Monsters
by Haiku Kitten
Summary: For the second time, R.J. Brande finds himself raising a stubborn Brainiac child. In many ways, Querl is a lot like Vril. Shameless fluff with kid!Brainy.


**Monsters**

By: Haiku

Fandom: Legion of Super-Heroes Reboot

Rating: K+

Characters: Brainiac 5 and R.J. Brande

**Summary: **For the second time, R.J. Brande finds himself raising a stubborn Brainiac child. In many ways, Querl is a lot like Vril.

**Author's Note: **Well, I'm still fairly new at writing fics for LOSH, so I'm mostly just practicing characterizations and the like but feedback is always nice, so I figured I'd share this, one of my most recent pieces. This is a bit of a crossover with L.E.G.I.O.N., since I'm implying that the Brande of Reboot is The Durlan from L.E.G.I.O.N. In my mind, The Durlan rescuing little Querl from Colu was just adorable and I had to write about it. I took a little liberty with this fic and due to LOSH being complicated and slightly difficult to follow, I might have some facts wrong. Bear with me for the sake of artistic license. I'm also considering doing companion pieces with Triad and Chameleon. Oh, R.J., what a family you have.

**Monsters**

_For one so small, you seem so strong_

_My arms will hold you, keep you safe and warm_

_This bond between us can't be broken_

_I will be here, don't you cry_

_**-You'll Be In My Heart, Phil Collins**_

"Querl! Stop that, now! Listen to me! Querl!"

The green skinned boy thrashed in his caretaker's hold like a wild animal, twisting and contorting his body as he fought for freedom. Brande held him tight, refusing to let go. "Querl, please stop screaming!" the man begged, nearly at his wit's end as to what to do with the child.

"No!" Querl screeched, kicking at the man and baring his teeth ferociously. "I. Don't. Want to! Let me go!"

"Not until you calm down!" Brande snapped, succeeding in trapping the eleven-year old beneath his larger weight, finally. "Why are you doing this?! You were fine only moments ago! Querl, lad, you have got to stop doing this!"

Querl's lips curled in a snarl. "Or what, you'll get rid of me?" he demanded before promptly going back to screaming bloody murder. "I said to get off! You're not the boss of me! Let me go!"

"You are fighting with the wrong person!" Brande insisted. "I only want to help you! I've given you a place to stay, your own personal laboratory, whatever you ask for! You can't behave like this, do you understand me?!"

For a few more moments, Querl struggled in vain to escape. At long last, his screams came to a halt and he went limp. His little chest heaved up and down as he glared up at his captor. "I don't have to do what you say," he insisted stubbornly.

Brande stared down at him incredulously. "Querl, you little monster, the most I ever tell you to do is eat your vegetables and brush your teeth! And you are usually happy to comply! Then suddenly you throw one of these fits, like the world is coming to an end, and you refuse to explain why. What is wrong with that head of yours?!"

"Nothing!" Querl shot back. "Coluans don't have mental problems, so stop acting like I've got one! I know I don't and I'm smarter than you!"

Well, Brande knew Coluans very well and he also knew that the whole "Coluans being impervious to mental issues" thing was a big pile of bullshit. Given the boy's ancestry, Brande had every right to worry about Querl's mental stability. However, arguing with Querl was getting him nowhere.

"Listen to me," he spoke gently. "I know you're angry and confused. You and I have to figure out the best way for you to deal with that." Querl looked away from him sullenly. "Querl, you know this behavior isn't good," Brande continued anyway. "You're a good boy with a big heart and you should definitely be smart enough to know that we have to address this."

Querl was not an ungrateful child by any means but his acclimation to society seemed a near impossibility. He'd spent too long locked up by himself; his social skills simply hadn't developed and he didn't seem to fully trust anyone around him. Perhaps it was only his immense intelligence that allowed him to communicate with Brande at all in the first place.

"… I don't…" the boy began hesitantly, "… I..."

Like any Dox, it was hard for Querl to say that he didn't know what to do. Brande understood this better than anyone. He moved off the boy, relieved that Querl had at least calmed down. "You won't know without studying it properly," he said, supplying the young Brainiac with an excuse. "I know you don't think you can believe me but I can help you."

"How?" Querl muttered, sitting up and drawing his knees to his chest. "You're just a stupid human."

"Don't say things like that to people," Brande scolded gently. "It hurts their feelings. You don't like to be called names, do you?" Querl shook his head. "You see, Querl, not everyone is as smart as you are – in fact, you might be the smartest person in the universe. However, everyone feels. Something that hurts you will hurt someone else."

"Everyone feels?" Querl asked curiously, resting his cheek against his knees as he stared at Brande. "Are you sure?" Brande nodded solemnly. "Oh…"

"Come here, lad," Brande said, opening his arms to hug the boy. After a moment's consideration, Querl scooted over to him and curled up against his chest. Brande wrapped his arms snugly around the boy and held him tight. "You're a good boy, Querl."

Querl's breathing hitched slightly but he didn't cry. "I never do anything right," he whispered. "No one likes me."

"That's something you have to come to understand about people," Brande replied. "Most of them don't try as hard as you do to be good. And most of them have not experienced life the way that you have. But I like you just the way you are. As long as you keep trying, you will always be good enough. And one day, you'll meet other people who like you. But you're a very special person and it takes other very special people to understand that."

For a moment, they sat in silence as Brande rubbed Querl's back and Querl took comfort in the safety Brande's arms offered him.

"Sometimes it feels like there are monsters in my head," the young Coluan finally admitted. "Not voices. It's more like… everything exploding in my mind all the time and I just know things all of a sudden and I've got to make it real. But I… Sometimes I get scared and I yell."

"Is that what happened earlier?" Brande questioned. Querl nodded wordlessly and the man sighed. "Why didn't you tell me about this?"

"I was embarrassed."

Brande shifted and took Querl's face in his hands, tilting the boy's chin so that they were looking in each other's eyes. "You can always come to me about these things," he said solemnly. "Always, Querl. I am here for you."

The boy looked away. "You're sending me away," he whispered. "You said so. I know I blow things up a lot and cost you a lot of money but I could try not to do that anymore if you'll let me stay."

"Querl, what in the universe are you talking about?" Brande questioned, perplexed. "When did I say I was going to send you away? I told you that this is your home now and I will never make you leave."

"You said you couldn't afford to keep me," Querl accused, scooting away from the man and crossing his arms over his chest. "You said you were going to send me somewhere that could!"

First, Brande was surprised at how deeply distressed Querl seemed to be at the prospect of being sent elsewhere. He was, for the most part, a very detached child and Brande had not been under the impression that Querl held a fondness for anyone or any place.

Second, he realized that there had been a terrible misunderstanding and Querl had likely been making himself miserable about if for days now.

"That's not what I meant," he soothed, reaching out to pet Querl's hair. Querl jerked away from the touch stubbornly. "Now, now, hear me out," Brande insisted. "I'm afraid you misunderstood me. I did say that your labs have gotten too expensive, yes, but I didn't mean that _you _had to leave. I'm relocating your lab, you silly thing."

Hesitantly, Querl looked up at him. "…What's that mean?" he asked. "Doesn't that mean that I have to leave too?"

"Not in the slightest," Brande replied. "I want you to intern at the Time Institute. It will be a bit like attending a public school. You can go to the institute during the day and work to your heart's content. And every evening you can come back here, have supper with me, and go to bed in your bedroom, in your bed. How does that sound?"

Querl stared at him in silence for a long moment, his little mouth pressed in a thin line as he considered Brande's words. "… Can I have some experiments in my room?" he asked finally.

"Nonflammable ones," Brande spoke firmly, ruffling the blond curls beneath his hand.

Suddenly, the boy lunged forward and wrapped his arms around Brande's neck, hugging tight. Brande quickly overcame his shock and hugged back. They remained that way for a few minutes, until Querl pulled away, looking sheepish. "Okay, that's acceptable," the Coluan said with a tiny smile.

"That's my boy," Brande said with a grin of his own.

Maybe he didn't need to worry so much about Querl after all.

END


End file.
